Angels in the Clouds Even After 5-4 Defeat

No one threw a chair or broke a bat over his knee. No one screamed in rage at the outcome of yet another taut game Sunday before 35,518 at Anaheim Stadium.

Apparently, these are the feel-good Angels and even a 5-4, 10-inning loss to the Toronto Blue Jays wasn’t going to ruin their enthusiasm on this day.

Chuck Finley gave up two home runs in the first four innings, but didn’t seem particularly downcast later.

Reliever Joe Grahe struggled in the pivotal 10th inning, giving up what turned out to be the winning run on Ed Sprague’s blooper that first baseman Eduardo Perez misjudged. But Grahe took it in stride, saying he was happy with his pitches.

Bo Jackson struck out not once, not twice but thrice. But he also hit a towering home run to left-center field that tied the score, 4-4, in the eighth.

Chili Davis hit a three-run homer that gave the Angels a short-lived 3-1 lead in the third inning. So far, the Angel designated hitter doesn’t appear to be doing anything wrong, batting .388 with three homers and 12 runs batted in in 13 games.

Shortstop Gary DiSarcina came up with runners on second and third and two out in the 10th, but sent a lazy fly ball to center fielder Devon White to end the game.

Manager Buck Rodgers took all this into consideration and declared Sunday, and indeed the Angels’ first home stand, a rousing success.

For the record, the Angels were swept in three games by the Cleveland Indians and split four games against the two-time defending world champion Blue Jays.

“I think we came out of this series with the feeling we can compete with the big boys,” Rodgers said. “We played our tails off in this series.”

He acknowledged his concern for the bullpen, which faltered for the third consecutive game. But even that couldn’t erase all of the positives.

Grahe, 0-2 with a 4.91 earned-run average, relieved Finley to start the ninth and immediately got into trouble.

He couldn’t field Roberto Alomar’s chopper, which resulted in an infield single. After retiring Paul Molitor, he gave up a ground-rule double to Joe Carter. He then walked John Olerud intentionally to load the bases.

With the infield in, Sprague hit a flutter ball toward Perez, who simply mistimed his leap on what could have been an easy out.

Rodgers didn’t fault Perez, though.

“When it’s hit right on the handle, on a full swing like that, it’s easy to misjudge,” Rodgers said. “It’s like a changeup.”

Alomar raced home nevertheless.

“Even though things aren’t working out for me right now, I’m happy with the way I’m throwing the ball,” Grahe said. “If I were going out and running 3-and-1 counts on everybody and they were hitting rocket shots . . . but that’s not happening right now.”

Finley, who gave up four runs and six hits with six strikeouts and three walks in nine innings, saw Sunday as a measure of progress. On a scale of one to 10, he gave himself a seven.

“Maybe seven and a half,” he said. “I don’t really like giving up four runs a game like I have been. Everything seems to be getting easier. If I can keep my run total down, I can give us a better chance to win.”

With Jackson and Davis around, there are always possibilities.

With the Angels trailing, 4-3, entering the eighth, Jackson slammed a 3-and-2 pitch from reliever Tony Castillo far over the 386-foot sign on the wall in left-center. He seemed overmatched by every pitch Castillo had thrown until then.

“Bo’s Bo,” Rodgers said, breaking into a wide smile. “What you see is what you get. He doesn’t do anything in a small way. He’ll give you the most god-awful at-bat, then come right back and hit the ball 500 feet.”